In the recent election, Nevada voters -- statewide, not just in Las Vegas -- passed a new anti-smoking law. They had a choice between two ballots: one, a fairly lenient and the other, a fairly stringent option. Question 4 imposed minimal restrictions on smoking, limited to areas in bars and restaurants that allow children. Question 5 banned smoking in all indoor restaurants, bars and taverns that serve meals, as well as in the slot machine sections of supermarkets and convenience stores, video arcades, shopping malls, day-care centers, hospitals and medical offices, and on school grounds.
Nevadans rejected Question 4, with 52% voting against; they approved Question 5, with 54% voting in favor. The law takes effect on December 8.
Note that Nevada casinos are exempt from the ban. So far. Other gambling jurisdictions have outlawed smoking in casinos, to uniformly negative results. For example, a smoking ban imposed in 2002 at three racinos in Delaware has resulted in a 10%-19% decline in revenue. In Ontario, Canada, casinos took a big hit when the voters last May banned smoking in all public places, causing a similar revenue drop of 10%-20%. Business at Casino Windsor plummeted enough that it laid off 300 workers over the summer.
New Jersey adopted an ordinance banning smoking in public places that went into effect last April and Colorado's started on July 1. Both exempt casinos. However, in Atlantic City, the City Council is currently considering a regulation that would do away with the exemptions -- for casinos, tobacconists, and cigar bars -- in that town. The City Council unanimously voted to sponsor the measure, 9-0, which might or might not be an indication of what will happen when they vote on the measure itself on December 29.
The anti-smoking sentiment continues to sweep the nation and the casinos are starting to feel the pain. It might take longer to implement in Nevada, where the casinos have so much influence, even though, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Nevada has the nation's highest rate of smoking-related deaths and one of the lowest rates of smoke-free workplaces. Banning smoking in Nevada casinos might be a radical notion, but it would seem only fair to the proprietors of the bars where smoking is no longer allowed, who face a tough choice.
According to the new law, bars that serve food and have slot and video poker machines must now choose between the two. Patrons at such establishments can either smoke, gamble, and drink or eat, gamble, and drink. Because profit margins are slim on food and fat on slots, many bars could conceivably give up serving food, which would mean closing kitchens and laying off food-service workers, not to mention the disappearance of all those great discount bar-food specials, which will no longer be economically viable for the owners to subsidize.
Further muddying the waters is the question of enforcement. How will law enforcement respond to complaints of illegal smoking? Who will be in violation, the smoker or the establishment? What will the penalties be? Will local and state health officials be involved? Some bars have even been vocal about their intentions to ignore the law till it's clear how it'll be played out. One was pictured in the Las Vegas Review-Journal: Its sign read, "Screw You, Nevada. We're Smoking."
Tavern and convenience-store owners and their association are considering their options, which include legal challenges based on equal-protection rights, fair treatment under the law, and unfair competition.
The law specifies that smoking where it's not allowed is a criminal misdemeanor, punishable by fines up to $1,500. The state's current anti-smoking law specifies fines of $100 for each incident.
